Norma’s, an open space restaurant in Le Parker Meridien, houses a brunch that is out of this world. I didn’t even know Norma’s existed until Metrodad recommended the restaurant. I love trying new brunch spots in the West Village, but Chris and I finally trekked up to midtown to sample Norma’s offerings.

I made a reservation through OpenTable and received a confirmation with detailed instructions of what I should do before going to Norma’s:

• 24 hrs to go—print out the menu http://parkermeridien.com/eat.php
• 24-12 hrs to go—show off the menu and seek advice on what to order (yeah, they’re all jealous!)
• 18 hrs to go—aerobic exercise and strength training (preferably the Quickie) http://www.parkermeridien./gravity/
• Lunch the day before—remember, you’re in training, so have a protein shake
• Dinner the day before—no eating after 7pm—only bread and water allowed
• Night before—dream sweet dreams of beautiful food floating through your subconscious
• Morning of—do a full yoga session with Swami Ramdev Ji http://www.divyayoga.com/freePranayamTraning.htm
• Arrive on time and tell me that the “Swami sent you”
• You’ve made it, now time to eat!

What the heck - aerobic exercise to prepare for a brunch?! After an initial glance at the menu, I could kind of see why (lots of sweets and other fatty brunch foods) but seriously, a workout?! After seeing a couple of table’s food choices, I could see the reasoning behind a workout to prepare; Norma’s portions are HUGE and they do NOT mess with brunch.

Chris and I ordered two sweet brunch items - the Waz-Za and the Waffling Toast. The Waz-Za is a waffle with fruit on the inside and fruit on the outside with a crackly brulee top:

When we were ordering, we saw a waiter walk by with a huge waffle and a pile of fresh berries and whipped cream and immediately thought that was the Waz-Za. I think we were initially a little disappointed when the actual Waz-Za appeared, but I took a bite and it was seriously…pure bliss. Let’s start with the waffle - not too crunchy and not too soggy; especially impressive for a waffle that’s smothered with so much pink sauce. The fruit was mixed into the waffle mix and you could taste little bits of blueberries every once in a while. The pink sauce on top of the waffles was a puree of sour cream and berries (I think) that was topped with blueberries and bananas. All together, it was already perfect, but then Norma’s adds another kicker by adding a crunchy topping:

Every bite was better than the last and after scarfing down half of the Waz-Za, my turn was up - it was time to trade for the waffling French toast:

A great idea - it’s a piece of bread that’s dipped in an egg batter mixture that’s pressed in a waffle maker. The French toast was infused with lots of citrus (not in a bad way) but I simply couldn’t eat my one and a half pieces. By the time it was my turn to try to conquer the waffling French toast, my stomach had already called it quits and I couldn’t finish. The French toast tasted great and I feel like I didn’t give it enough of a chance since I was so in love with the Waz-Za. French toast: 1, Grace’s stomach: 0:

Norma’s is a little on the expensive side (around $17/plate) but it’s definitely worth the trip. It beats Clinton St. Bakery in terms of taste AND they accept reservations. My only regret - I didn’t wear elastic pants.

How to get to Norma’s:

Norma’s
118 W. 57th Street between 6th and 7th
New York, NY 10019
212-708-7460